Off Track ..... Park makes splash with ad campaigns

SEOUL: South Korean teenager Park Tae-hwan has become the focus of advertising campaigns valued at over 100 billion won ($96 million) since winning the country's first Olympic gold in swimming, industry executives told local media.

Park, nicknamed "marine boy", signed major endorsement deals ahead of the Games when he was shattering South Korean records on his way to his triumph in the 400m freestyle on day two of the Games.

South Korea, host of the 1988 summer Olympics, has had its share of Games heroes, but not someone like Park, a charismatic 18-year-old who is the first Korean to rank among the best in the world in events long dominated by Americans and Australians.